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Adam Himmelsbach | Was Louisville's win over Notre Dame as big as it seemed?

Columnist Adam Himmelsbach takes his regular look back at the sports week that was…

1) Louisville's 31-28 win over Notre Dame on Saturday elicited some interesting reactions. For Cardinals fans, obviously, there was joy about a signature win against perhaps college football's most storied program. For some others, though, there were questions about what the fuss was about, as the Irish had lost three of their previous four games and were not ranked. Was this result stunning? No. But was it important for this program, and was it another sign that there is no longer a great divide between the Cardinals and college football's traditional powers? Absolutely. Brand names count for something, and Notre Dame is as brand-name as it gets. So for U of L to go on the road and win in South Bend is huge, even if the Fighting Irish's record does not indicate that. It was new, it was historic and it was a first.

Louisville's Sheldon Rankins talks about win at over the weekend at Notre Dame and the ucoming matchup with interstate rival Kentucky.

2) Some fans were upset to see the U of L/UK game receive a noon start time. And I've made it very clear how much I despise noon kickoffs in general. But let's be real here. UK/U of L does not yet command national attention in a primetime slot. In fact, it will most likely be the fourth-rated nationally televised game at noon, after Michigan/Ohio State, Georgia/Georgia Tech and South Carolina/Clemson.

3) It's early and it's a small sample size, but Kentucky point guard Tyler Ulis is shooting the ball better than I expected he would. He made both of his 3-point attempts in the Wildcats' 86-28 win over Montana State on Sunday, putting him at 8-for-13 (62 percent) on the season. Yes, that rate will drop, but outside shooting was one of the only questions surrounding this team, and it appears Ulis will help answer it.

4) On the same day Louisville native Reggie Bonnafon guided the Cardinals to the win over Notre Dame, another local signal-caller shined on a big stage. In Harvard's 31-24 win over Yale, Crimson quarterback Conner Hempel, a senior from Union, Ky., tossed the game-winning touchdown with 55 seconds left, helping his team cap a perfect 10-0 season. Hempel had missed the previous three games with a shoulder injury and had barely practiced in the week leading up to the Yale game.

5) If you haven't seen New York Giants wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr.'s one-handed touchdown catch against the Dallas Cowboys, stop reading this for a second and Google it. After being bumped, Beckham made the grab as he fell backward, initially using just three fingers to secure the long toss. In sports, there is a tendency to declare the most recent great moment as the best moment. I have not seen every great football catch, but I would like to see one that tops this one.